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Manchester Street Park

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About The Park

 

Manchester Street Park (the former Covanta site) is one of Lawrence's hidden gems-- a linear 5-acre parcel of land situated in the northwest corner of the city and bordering Stevens Pond at the head of Lawrence's stretch of the Spicket River. Like many industrial sites in Lawrence, the area suffered from a history of contamination (the site at one time housed a municipal trash incinerator) that has long posed challenges to its redevelopment. At the same time, the site offers great new green space and serves as a spectacular anchor for the Spicket River Greenway. Construction was completed in 2009, and since then, the park has served many residents in Lawrence as a thriving green space.

 

 

Ribbon-Cutting

On Wednesday September 16, we were pleased to celebrate the opening of the park, complete with a playground, swings, a pond overlook and 30 community garden beds. Speakers representing many of the funders and park activists were represented including The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, EPA Brownfields Program, Community Development Block Grant Program (HUD), the City of Lawrence, Lawrence Environmental Action League, Covanta Energy, neighborhood residents and Groundwork Lawrence.

 

Manchester Park Construction

Manchester Street Park opened in 2009 on the Spicket River Greenway and includes a playground, swings, a pond overlook and community garden beds.

 

Park Construction began March 2009: The City accepted bids for the park construction on February 27. The project was awarded on March 5 to David W. White and Son, Inc a well-regarded firm that has constructed many athletic fields in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Given the fast-paced timeline we’ve laid out for the park’s construction, this work will proceed quickly and be complete in June. Unfortunately, due to cost constraints, some of the park’s elements—including the community garden beds, the mural wall, and full site lighting—will not be included in this phase of park construction. However, Groundwork Lawrence and the City are pursuing alternative sources of grant funding that we hope will enable the garden beds and the mural wall to be fully installed sometime during 2009. What you will surely see in June at the completed park, however, are two playground areas (one for 5 - 12 year olds, and one for 2 - 5 year olds), an overlook to the pond with a colorful pavilion, a great big grassy lawn with lots of trees, a portion of the Spicket River Greenway trail, dedicated parking, park signage, and space set aside and prepared for the community garden beds (which will include an active water hookup). You can also follow progress at our blog.

 

Park construction was completed in July with very few hiccups along the way. The contractor worked hand in hand with the City management and GWL's team including the landscape architect. A ribbon cutting is scheduled for September (Date TBA). Right now the grass is growing, birds are chirping, and kids are playing. All in all-the park is settling in well on the Spicket River Greenway. Please check out the park-enjoy a picnic at one of the tables or sit in the shade at the Stevens Pond overlook. You can see images of the park at our Flickr site. Please check out the Success Stories page to read more about how the former Covanta site tranformed from a contaminated brownfield into the lovely Manchester Street park! Situated on the former site of an electrical power plant, the park serves the community year round by providing a family-friendly open green space.

Coverage

  • Manchester St. Park Wins the 2011 Audrey Nelson Community Development Achievement Award!
    • The Audrey Nelson Community Development Achievement Award represents the culmination of a national competition to identify and recognize exemplary uses of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds which best address the needs of low-income families and neighborhoods. The award was formally presented to project representatives at NCDA's 2011 Winter Legislative & Policy Meeting Awards Luncheon on January 21 in Washington, DC
  • Manchester St. Park Wins Brownfields Renewal 2010 Social Impact Award!
    • The recently renovated Manchester Street Park, a 5-acre former incinerator site on the Spicket River in urban Lawrence, Massachusetts, has been recognized by the trade publication Brownfield Renewal with its 2010 Brownfield Renewal Award for Social Impact. The awards, determined by a distinguished panel of industry experts, are “presented to projects that represent the gold standard of development across three distinct industry spheres of influence,” according to the publication. Blog post...
  • ​2010 Brownfields Renewal Social Impact of the Year Award magazine article
  • Rumbo Article - EPA Brownfields Funds in Lawrence
  • Eagle Tribune story - EPA awards clean-up funds
  • Eagle Tribune story - Urban Self Help grant award

More Information

For more information about the project call (978) 974-0770 or email Brad at Groundwork Lawrence.